Kappa
Kappa joins the Footyboots stable
It is hard to believe that a modern and progressive company like Kappa is almost a hundred years old. But the truth is that Kappa was founded as a sock and underwear company in 1916 in the Italian city Turin.
The companyâs belief in equality of the sexes caught the zeitgeist easily. The new and very modern attitude towards life was symbolised in Kappaâs world famous Omini-logo: The silhouette of a man and a woman sitting back to back, supporting each other.
The 70âs and 80âs saw lots of happy Kappa moments. In 1973 the classic Robe di Kappa Pique Polo was introduced, and it is still one of the worldâs best selling polo shirts. In 1981 Kappa sponsored the world famous New York Marathon crossing the Atlantic for the first time. The invasion of the US continued, and 1983 marked the beginning of a 10-year sponsorship of the US Track and Field Team. At the Olympics in Los Angeles and Seoul, mega stars like Carl Lewis, Florence Griffith-Joyner and Edwin Moses climbed one podium after another, wearing threads from Kappa.
Italians dig football â and so does Kappa. In the 70âs Kappa started sponsoring the local Turin club Juventus, and in 1980âs Kappa was one of Europeâs leading sport brands. International clubs like A. C. Milan, Roma, Ajax Amsterdam and Paris S. G. all wore Kappa, and they were joined in the 90âs by clubs like Barcelona and Red Star Belgrade. In 1996 Juventus won their third Champions League final wearing Kappa.
In recent years the soccer star Cobi Jones is one of Kappaâs triumphs, wearing Kappa boots while playing a record season for the LA Galaxy and the US National Team. The Italian national soccer team, too, made sport and fashion headlines, when the players entered the pitch during Euro 2000 wearing the new Kombat shirt.
Kappa has also entered the Danish market. In March 2002, the company agreed to sponsor the football club F. C. à rhus and in November 2003 a sponsor deal was made with the female rowing team âGuld 4âerenâ. During the summer 2004, a four-year sponsor deal was made with league champions F. C. København. The deal caused a great deal of attention, and it is probably the largest football sponsorship to date in Denmark.